Hinged clips are in widespread use, having arms with free ends resiliently biassed together and between which an article can be gripped, the other ends of the arms being squeezable towards one another so as to separate the free ends to permit release of the article. One use for a hinged clip is to self-secure to the edge of all article, to help protect the article edge from damage.
During or following manufacture, it is customary for several articles as referred to above to be laid horizontal and stacked one above another; alternatively they can be stacked on one edge, so as to be upstanding. The articles in the stack typically await removal to the next manufacturing stage or transfer into store ready for delivery to a customer.
During storage and transportation in particular, the peripheral edges of at least some articles of a stack can be damaged, reducing the value and perhaps utility of those damaged articles.
Even during subsequent delivery to a stockist or to the final customer, whether of a single article or of a stack of articles, article edges can be damaged.
It is desirable that the edge protector be of a material and design permitting a friction grip i.e. to the article opposed sides joined by the edge, so as to prevent inadvertent loss of the edge protector, as during single article transfer between locations, and so as to negate the need for separate attachments (which themselves may damage the article sides). Thus a hinged clip could provide a suitable edge protector.
If articles are manufactured in anticipation of later sales, then they are likely to be stacked in long-term storage. Using an edge protector having a (friction-grip) part which can be trapped between the sides of adjacent articles will however act to hold the article sides apart; if the friction-grip part is thick, fewer articles can be stacked in the height available, so that it is desirable that the edge protector be of "U-section" with at least the arms of the "U" formed from a single thickness material.
It will be understood that although a desired edge protector shape may readily nowadays be formed from a plastics material e.g moulded polystyrene or polyethylene, users are increasingly conscious of the environmental implications and the public reaction to long-term disposal problems, particularly for "one trip" packaging materials, and users have for some years been actively seeking environmentally acceptable alternatives. Further, in a technical area in which recycled or recyclable materials may easily be employed, many manufacturers and users are increasingly resisting the use of materials which are not and/or may not be recycled.